Padres baseball: Good News or Bad News?

Ladies and gentleman, your San Diego Padres of 2016.

Good news or bad news first? Well, I always like to hear the bad news first.

Bad news: Padres are 3-8 this season, and are winless in four tries at Petco Park, the same place where the 2016 MLB All-Star Game will be held.

The good news? Yes, there is good news. The Padres actually scored a run at Petco Park.

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OK, time for the great news: The Padres pitching has really done well the last few games. Robbie Erlin, Colin Rea, Drew Pomeranz, and James Shields have each pitched well in the past four days for Andy Green‘s team, yet none of them have a win to show for it.

Robbie Erlin

Erlin went six innings with three hits and one run to go with two walks and seven K’s in a 3-0 loss to the Phillies. Erlin deserved the win, but the Padres, per usual, couldn’t muster up any offense. Erlin was fantastic in his first start of the season for the Padres, and it’s a shame Erlin couldn’t get his second win of the young season.

Colin Rea

The next day, Colin Rea pitched an absolute gem, going seven innings with five hits and five K’s. Rea gave up two runs, but just one was earned and he only walked a pair. Rea came out of that game with the loss, as the Padres lost 2-1. Rea bounced back from that rough outing in Colorado by pitching a gem on the road. Unfortunately, Rea will have an 0-2 record until his next start.

Pom-Pom

And the day after that? Drew Pomeranz went six innings with three hits and a pair of runs, both earned. Pom walked three but struck out eight Phillies in another impressive performance from the man who came over as part of the Yonder Alonso trade. Pomeranz wasn’t even a favorite to get a spot in the rotation, but the southpaw has done surprisingly well in this season so far for the Padres.

The total from those three games for the Padres pitchers? 19 innings, 11 hits, and five runs. For a three-game stretch, those numbers would usually result in three wins, or at the very least two victories. However, the Padres scored a total of 1 run in the last 27 innings of that Phillies. That one run? A Brett Wallace single to drive in Derek Norris in the top of the ninth on Wednesday.

Greinke vs Shields

On to Friday. James Shields versus Zack Greinke, staff ace versus staff ace, veteran versus veteran. Greinke and Shields went toe to toe basically all night long, but Greinke and the Diamondbacks would get the last laugh.

Greinke went 7 1/3 with six hits and a pair of runs, walking just one Padre. Shields looked like his old self, which was a sight for sore eyes for Padres fans. Shields went seven innings, giving up six hits and two runs. Shields struck out six, but struggled with command at times, finishing with four walks.

Padres Offense on Friday

The Padres offense actually scored two runs on Friday night, at Petco Park! The Padres had ample opportunities to plate more runs, but couldn’t come through when it counted.

The Padres were up 2-1 before Arizona tied it up in the seventh inning. Then, the Diamondbacks plated a run in the top of the ninth to take the lead and eventually win the game. Jake Lamb reached base on an infield single off of Fernando Rodney. Lamb would steal second base, then advance to third on a disastrous throwing error by Derek Norris. Lamb would score the potential game-winning run on a pinch-hit infield single by Phil Gosselin.

On to the bottom of the ninth. Cory Spangenberg singled to center, and Alexei Ramirez hit a single on the first pitch. Runners at the corners, nobody out, perfect opportunity for San Diego.

Alexi Amarista to the dish, and Little Ninja struck out for the first out of the frame. Andy Green sent Brett Wallace to pinch-hit in the nine hole, and the Diamondbacks responded by intentionally walking Wallace to load the bases.

Bases loaded. Jon Jay at the plate, one out, down by one. This had the smell of a walk-off written all over it. And, of course, Jon Jay grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the game. Diamondbacks win, 3-2.

That’s about as tough as it gets. Take the lead, lose the lead, break the tie on essentially a Derek Norris throwing error. Then to load the bases with one out, and a perfect chance for a walk-off win at Petco Park, a double play ball ends the game. Of course. That’s the way the season has gone.

If you throw out the 29-run outburst the Padres had in two games in Denver, the Friars have (wait for it) 10 runs in nine games. That is an average of just over one run per game. That, simply put, is not going to cut it (no pun intended).

Andy Green has been as patient as anybody could ever be, especially given the circumstances. You have to feel awful for Green, whose managerial career started with a dubious MLB record-the Padres becoming the first team in history to have five shutouts in their first 10 games.

“We have to be more competitive,” Green said after Thursday’s 16-K shutout. “It’s time for us to make more mental adjustments in the box.”

The Padres offense is struggling, and that is an understatement. Where in the world is (offense) San Diego?

Please, somebody. Somebody break out, somebody get hot, somebody drive in more than one run. The two RBI’s in Friday’s game?

If you guessed it right, congrats. Alexei Ramirez and Alexi Amarista were responsible for the two runs batted in for the Padres. That’s saying something.

Next: Padres Lose Tough One to Velasquez

The bright side? The Padres young pitchers have done well as of late, and James Shields’ performance against Greinke was vintage James. If that continues, and the Padres can help their pitchers out by scoring some runs, this season can change in the blink of an eye.

Andy Green has kept saying it, and we have got to keep believing it, Padres fans.

11 games down, 151 to go.

The season is long, and that could be a great thing, or that could be a terrible thing. Only time will tell.

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